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Thursday, May 23, 2013

Senate votes to cut crop-insurance subsidy for high-income farmers; more amendments coming

Now that farm lobbies have embraced the idea of more tax-subsidized crop insurance to replace direct payments, at a higher cost, "the same activists who spent years trying to kill direct payments are turning their guns on crop insurance," David Rogers reports for Politico.

The battle was joined this afternoon and tonight on the Senate floor, starting with 59-33 passage of an amendment that would "substantially cut the subsidy rate for wealthy farmers with incomes over $750,000," Rogers writes. "In the wings are proposals requiring much greater disclosure from the Agriculture Department on who benefits from the program. And there is a bipartisan proposal to bar any farmer from getting more than $50,000 in premium subsidies per year."

Opponents of the program say it's not right to heavily subsidize wealthy farmers, but supporters "argue the program proved its worth by helping farmers survive the fierce drought of last summer and fall," Rogers reports. "And in a broader sense, insurance for the farmer is also insurance for the nation by helping to maintain a safe and viable food supply system. Perhaps most important is the question of how to apply means-testing without driving larger participants out of the risk pool." Read more)

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